Dwyane Wade has not been good. No superstar has struggled more in the Conference Finals than Wade, which is bizarre considering his matchups. Wade’s facing Ray Allen, who is better, but not completely back from bone spurs. He should be eating him alive. But the Celtics’ help defense has been brutal in cutting off Wade’s angles. Wade’s still shooting 44 percent vs. the C’s, and 70 percent at the rim, but he’s had a difficult time getting his game in gear.

For Wade, Game 7 Saturday night is a referendum on his legacy. Last year’s playoff run was ultimately about LeBron James and LeBron James only. And while James will suffer a heaping dose of scrutiny should the Heat go down the tubes in Game 7, there’s been a rising trend of questions about how Dwyane Wade isn’t helping matters. He’s been off, and worse, his effort has been questioned, as he spends his time complaining about no-calls instead of getting back on defense.

Should the Heat go down in flames (GET IT, BECAUSE THEY’RE THE HEAT?), Wade’s facing a drastic re-evaluation of his career. You’re already seeing it. “Well, Shaq was really why they won the title!” (despite the fact that O’Neal was in full-on gentle-slide-to-retirement mode already and Wade accounted for about a billion percent of their offense. “The league had a down year that season!” (despite Wade having gone through the Mavericks in their second best team assembled). Wade’s facing a pretty explosive dose of revisionist history if the Heat don’t win the title, especially by losing in this Game 7.

Wade’s always been fearless. That’s who he is. But he’s let the officiating’s interpretation of the Celtics’ physicality get the best of him. LeBron James didn’t complain to the officials in Game 6. He took over. That’s what Wade has to do. He may not be able to at this point thanks to his knee not being in good enough shape. He may not be able to due to age, injury, or the Celtics’ defense. But Paul Pierce is proof you don’t have to play well consistently in this series to have a huge impact. He’s got to play smart, and he’s got to play hard. The Heat can’t spare a man. It’s all hands on deck.

Wade can get past Allen. The problem has been his inability to draw contact on the drive or to hit the pull-up jumper. He’s rushing shots and many of them, he’s just missing. He’s tried angling for some threes, and that’s a bad plan, Wade’s never been a good perimeter shooter. Wade needs to work his way to the middle of the floor. That’s where the Celtics are driving him away from, but it’s his best chance to attack. The Celtics don’t want him there because he’s great there, and the Celtics are weak there. But Allen and Rondo are overplaying to that side, and help defense is coming from the wing to attack the dribble.

But forget X’s and O’s. This is about legacy. This is Dwyane Wade’s moment to validate his career and answer the questions about whether he’s already past his prime. This is Game 7, and it’s time to find out who Dwyane Wade is.

Paul George and Russell Westbrook — now with Carmelo Anthony — form one of the more interesting teams in the NBA in Oklahoma City. Deep with quality role players and a defense that should be top 10 (if not top 5) in the league, if the three big names can learn to sacrifice and mesh, the Thunder will be dangerous.

Paul George sounds motivated to take it all on… which he should be the first day of training camp. Still, it’s a good sign for Thunder fans.

“I took it as it was a kick in the behind, like, ‘Go ahead and go try to beat the Warriors. Go play alongside Russ and get your butt kicked against the Warriors.’ That’s how I looked at how that trade went down, because honestly we had no idea OKC was even interested or was in the trade until the trade actually happened. But again, I’m not here to trash Indiana. They have some of the best people I’ve ever met in their front office and in that organization. I grew up there. I could go on and on (with) the positives in Indiana, but that’s where my thought process and my – that’s where I, I guess, my opportunity to leave had opened up.”

There was some “go ahead and beat the Warriors” in that trade — it looks, from the outside, like the Pacers did not want George to land anywhere he wanted to go.

Thing is, as human beings, we by our nature try to make the best of situations. Even people who suffer genuine personal tragedies often come out the other side saying that it changed who they were for the better and they are happy with their new life. This is just basketball. George will adapt — and he’s on a very good team. If the bar is “can they beat a healthy Warriors team in a series” then the Thunder will fall short, as will every other team. But the Thunder are on that next tier in the NBA and could be a threat.

Plus, competitors like George always look at a trade as a challenge.

It’s going to be a fascinating season for the Thunder. We’ll see if all that talent is willing to make the sacrifices needed to win at the highest levels of the NBA.

When the Chicago Bulls traded Jimmy Butler — finally making a decision on the franchise’s direction — one of the centerpieces they got back from Minnesota was Zach LaVine. The wildly athletic two-guard had evolved into more than just a dunker, averaging 18.9 points per game and shooting 38 percent from three — he had become a legitimate scoring threat against any defense.

Then he blew out his ACL.

How that injury impacts his game remains to be seen… so when will the Bulls see him on the court? Coach Fred Hoiberg addressed that as Chicago started training camp, as reported by Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.

Although Zach LaVine's numbers are ahead of schedule, Bulls don't expect him to practice with contact until mid-November

That’s just taking contact in practice. The Bulls will be cautious bringing back a guy they see as part of their future, so expect this to be closer to Thanksgiving or the end of the month before he plays. Which is the smart move to make.

Even then, ACL injuries take a long time to overcome, even for young players putting in the recovery work. It may be next season before we know if LaVine will continue on the trajectory he was on in Minnesota.

“Only time I am going to concern myself with what [Lonzo] does off the court is if it is affecting his play on the court,” Johnson said at the Lakers’ media day when asked about Ball’s reality Facebook series, “Ball in the Family.”

“Right now, I think it is awesome,” Johnson said. “His family is great. They came out Saturday, we had a big Laker picnic. … His dad is wonderful with me, and I am cool with him. … I think [Lonzo] is tired of all this [hype]. He is just like me; I just want to play and I think he wants to play, and then Saturday night [for the Lakers’ preseason opener], sold out, in Anaheim, wow!”

It’s Magic’s job to put a positive spin on things.

That said, he’s right. The Lakers (and every NBA team) have dealt with overinvolved parents before and know how to create some space for the player to focus on the game. Locker rooms have a way of sorting themselves out in these kinds of situations. Plus, the Lakers have been down the reality show road before (when Lamar Odom married Khloe Kardashian), and while that had an ugly ending, it wasn’t for lack of Lakers’ players and others in the organization trying to step in and help. (Odom just wasn’t yet in a place to accept help.)

Soon LaVar will be focused on his other sons and Lonzo, who appears practiced at tuning his father out and focusing on what is in front of him, will have the grind of the NBA schedule to worry about.

The recruitment of major college athletes — and then the steering of the handful that get to go pro to shoe companies and agents — is a sleazy business. It makes HBO’s “The Duece” look like Disneyland. It’s something sports fans know but largely turn a blind eye to until it forces its way into the headlines.

Former NBA Rookie of the Year Chuck Person, now an assistant coach at Auburn, was among those named in the scandal.

Person is making headlines because he’s the biggest name in the scandal. He is charged with accepting approximately $91,500 from a business manager, who has flipped and is working with prosecutors. This “business manager, offered bribes to Person to steer players toward his services, as well as another person charged in the scandal.

Person told prosecutors he gave $18,500 of the money he took to two players’ families, according to the filings.

Person was the No. 4 pick in the 1986 NBA draft and went on to win Rookie of the Year, followed by a 13-year NBA career. He made $22.9 million over the course of his career.